Wise up; it's not going to work

We pick up our story after the Great Western debacle and the limited success of the Union Army Balloon Corps. Neither of these ventures were particularly fruitful. Did that stop a new group of aeronauts from trying anew? Could the American independent spirit of adventure and traversing the troposphere in a basket be stilled?

No.

Famous aeronaut John Wise convinced the Daily Graphic, a New York newspaper, to fund his flight. The newspaper created a massive publicity stunt out of the preparation and launch. 

Throngs in an unending procession came to Broadway and 14th Street where the huge balloon was being made by the Domestic Sewing machine Co. and where a banner announced in bold letters "To Europe in Sixty Hours 1-1 The Great Balloon 1-1 The Daily Graphic" (Stamps, May 29, 1976, p. 663).

The balloon's basket was two floors. The top, ten feet high, was the living quarters outfitted with tables, chairs, and instruments. The bottom, four feet high, was for storage.

John Wise never took the Daily Graphic balloon across the Atlantic. By some accounts he was fired; by others he quit because he felt the balloon was unsafe.  Instead, on September 12, 1873, aeronaut Washington Donaldson and two other men attempted to lift off the ground from Brooklyn but never got anywhere as the balloon's fabric ripped. The Daily Graphic and the men inside were deflated.

Undaunted, on October 10, 1873, aeronaut Washington Donaldson and two other men floated up from Brooklyn to the cheers and cries of an excited crowd, who expected to hear in a couple of days that the Great Balloon had landed in Europe.

The dream that never happened,
from The Philatelist, 1943, p. 218

A few hours later, the balloon made its first and final landing in Connecticut, a few miles short of Europe. There is no extant mail from that excursion. However, there is one cover known from Donaldson's later adventures in P.T. Barnum's circus in which he dropped "Messages from the Clouds."

There are some other collectibles from other transatlantic balloon mail experiments, but by and large these were unmanned, smaller balloons launched in large quantities that included postal cards to be mailed by whomever found them.

Balloon mail now holds its place as a unique, if not practical, form of mail service.

August schedule update 2

Whoops! can't believe I forgot to post our Tucson Birthday Party in which we announce the Stamp Design Contest winners! The library is hosting the event starting at 10 a.m.

Also, the library will be closed from about 11 - 1, as we're picking up a large book donation then.

Up, Up, and.. [crickets]

Did you know... there was once a great Balloon Mail experiment? The balloon mail craze was a short-lived one, primarily because it was an absolute failure.

The first transatlantic flight was attempted in 1860 by aeronaut T.S.C. Lowe. First called "The City of New York," it caused a huge stir in New York City where it was to launch. Expectations and enthusiasm deflated when the New York Gas Company couldn't get enough gas pressure to lift the balloon.

Dr. Cresson of the Franklin Institute to the rescue! The operation was moved to Philadelphia, the balloon name was changed to "Great Western," and it took of September 8, 1860.

And then immediately plummeted back down. Apparently, too many practice runs left the balloon fabric weak.

There had been great hopes for not only the success of the flight itself, but also in air mail delivery. The balloon basket was equipped with

nautical and meteorological instruments, lanterns and signal rockets, a large supply of provisions; and for emergency purposes a metal boat suspended from the basket. The mail was contained in waterproof bags marked "U.S. Mail" with parachutes attached so that messages cold be dropped over ships en route and over towns once the European continent was reached (Stamps, May 29, 1976, p. 662).

The only piece of mail known to survive was probably handed on board at the last minute because it wasn't cancelled. It reads,

Phila. Sept, 1860.
Dear mother
As the Great Bloon is going today I thought I would write but dont whether this will reach you in four days from the time it is written. Mary gave birth to a daughter this morning about five oclock. She is pretty well and it is a fine child. If this note should reach you please take good care of it.
                                                                                      your affectionate son
                                                                                      Philip

This is a great undertaking for Professor Lowe of the Great Western Bloon

It certainly was, poor man. But it didn't go so well. And his second attempt was thwarted by the Civil War. But then that gave him the chance to serve in the Balloon Corps. No, your eyes are not deceiving you. There was a civilian contract group called the Union Army Balloon Corps, and he really did go up in a balloon, using a telegraph to report troop movement in the Peninsula Campaign and the Battle of Seven Pines. His ballooning days were pretty much over by 1863, and he refocused more on technology involving water and gas.

Though Lowe's experiment in balloon mail wasn't a rousing success, it wasn't the only attempt at it.

Next week: The pigeon-and-dirigible publicity stunt by The Daily Graphic. Stay tuned.

Lovely meter mail... and more

Not too long ago, we received a large donation from the Meter Stamp Society, consisting of many monographs and journals from many countries in many languages. I've started processing this generous gift, starting with three AICAM (Italian Association of Meter Stamp Collectors) titles, AICAM Flash, Aicam news, and Congresso AICAM. Much more meter mail material to come in the next several months!

Some highlight of our other recently added material:


We have two of these Postage Stamp Catalogues from the Republic of China, the 1983 and the 1984. Isn't this cover fantastic?


Title: Postage stamp catalogue of the Republic of China

Author: China (Republic of China). Directorate General of Posts.

Publisher: Directorate General of Posts, Republic of China

I just had to put up the BACK cover of the auction catalog for The Richard L. Calhoun collection of Charleston, South Carolina: the first year of secession. Stunning.

AND, lot 541, "5-Cent Blue Provisional Stamp, the only recorded block," went for $15,000. I like to peek at the prices realized & see if there were any mind-boggling transactions.

Auction gallery: Robert A. Siegel Galleries in New York
Date of sale: 27 February 2014
Sale #1065





An auction catalog for the most famous lady in all of philately, the Inverted Jenny. The sale of this one stamp puts the 5-Cent Blue Provisionals to shame: it fetched $575, 100.

!!!

Auction gallery: Spink Shreves in New York
Date of sale: 21 May 2014

I'm pretty much a sucker for western postal history, so I had to include this auction catalog in the highlights, as well. It has some really nice background and history to several of the pieces up for sale.

Auction gallery: Robert A. Siegel Galleries in New York
Date of sale: 24 June 2014
Sale #1072









Full-color and large illustrations make this Japenese philatelic book a really exceptional addition to our collection.

Title: The large commemorative datestamps of Japan: 1902.06.20-1944.04.24 (ISJP Monograph 21; a supplement to volume 69, no. 3)

Author: Charles A.L. Swenson.

Publisher: The International Society for Japanese Philately, Inc., 2014



This fictional thriller by Michael Aldrich has a philatelic thread running through it.

Title: Imagine no more lies [a thriller]

Author: Michael Aldrich

Publisher: Xlibris Corp., 2011










You can delve into the history of British stamp design.

Title: Royal Mail stamps: a survey of British stamp design

Author: Stuart Rose

Publisher: Phaidon, 1980










And, a serious topic, road safety, complete with a "SAFETY DEPENDS ON ME!" slogan. This doesn't look like an official official publication -- I couldn't find a publication # for example. But it clearly has an association with USPS.

Title: Lifting the fog from driver safety: rural carrier training guide

Publisher: United States Postal Service? No date.








And a complete list of all our recent arrivals:

Meter mail journals:

• AICAM flash - n. 1 (1982) - no. 59-60 (1996).
• Aicam news - no. 1 (1997) - no. 10 (1999), no. 12 (1999) -no. 16 (2000), no. 18 (2001) - no. 20 (2001)
• Congresso AICAM - no. 1 (1982) - no. 17 (1998), no. 19 (2000), no. 20 (2001)

Other journals:

• DFT, Dansk Filatelistisk Tidsskrift - 1960-2010 (computer file)
• Inside Coverage: first day cover newsletter - 1976-1983
• Philamath - Vol. 1, no. 1 (July 1979)- Vol. 35, no. 4 (Apr 2014) (computer file)
• Philatelia chimica et physica / Journal of the Chemistry and Physics on-Stamps Study Unit - Vol. 8, no. 1 (spring 1986)-CURRENT [selected issues]
• PHT, Posthistorisk tidsskrift - 1972-2011 (computer file)
• Skilling - 1972-2000 (computer file)

Books / monographs:

• How to collect stamps (Bullard handbook Series)
• Imagine no more lies [a thriller] by Michael Aldrich.
• The large commemorative datestamps of Japan: 1902.06.20-1944.04.24 by Charles A.L. Swenson.
• Postage due: the United States postage due essays, proofs, and specimens 1879-1986 by Harry K. Charles.
• Postage stamp catalogue of the Republic of China, 1983 & 1984
• Royal Mail stamps: a survey of British stamp design by Stuart Rose.

Auction catalogs:

• The Brandon collection of Confederate states stamps and postal history: part one: postmaster's provisionals, R.A. Siegel Auction Galleries
• The Daniel H. and Marcel V. Collection: birds of the world, R.A. Siegel Auction Galleries
• The J.E. Safra 24c Inverted Jenny, Spink Shreves Galleries
• The New Helvetia collection of western expresses and California mails: featuring Pony Express stamps and covers, R.A. Siegel Auction Galleries
• A portion of the Wade Saadi struck on stamps collection: 5 cents - 90 cents, 1851-1866 issues, R.A. Siegel Auction Galleries

Exhibits:

• Die figurestempel Finnlands = Finnish figure postmarks / Reinhard Weber collection cork cancels, Finland (computer file)

Postal employee manuals, training, etc.

• Arizona district IJ (instructions for the job) guidelines: for RCA/TRC rural route delivery new hires
• Field implementation kit: special postal bulletin / Rate case implementation / R-2000-1
• Handbook EL-812: Hazardous materials and spill response - 1997
• Lifting the fog from driver safety: rural carrier training guide
• Performance evaluation system: confirm profile quick-start guide version 1, September 2004
• Postage, rates, and information / Domestic postage rates and fees / Notice 59 - 1959, 1985, 1993, 1998
• Rate case training: shaping our future (video)
• Unisys model 2050 integrated retail terminal: user's guide

August schedule updates

The library reading room has been reserved next week on Tues the 12th through Thursday the 14th. The stacks are still available, but cold. Bring a jacket if you're going to do some research.

Revised August schedule pfd here.